Uploaded March 2022 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
OUTDATED VIDEO - There is an updated video with a newer setup with steps for Mac and Linux as well, along with a step by step guide to make your first game. The new version is here: youtu.be/UZ04rk3lLqU
Learn how to setup the Playdate SDK for Windows and put together a simple game. I go over how to install the SDK, setting up VS Code to allow for code auto-completion and building from the editor, file and game structure, as well as making a simple game about picking up coins.
Check out my book "The Beginner's Guide to Lua for Game Development" to learn how to program in Lua!
squidgod.itch.io/lua-for-game-development
UPDATE: The setup in this video is slightly outdated as the template was changed Here's an updated video with the updated template: youtube.com/watch?v=ZPcfC98JogQ
Update to the old setup: No need to run VSCode as admin! New workaround: Open PowerShell and change execution policy to RemoteSigned, so you can run closeSim.ps1 without admin rights. Do this by entering Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser into PowerShell and enter Y. Also, Panic will be adding debug support for the Windows Simulator (as they've already done for Mac), and the creator of the template (Whitebrim) will be adding a feature to build project from side debug menu button when it's available.
Playdate SDK Download: https://play.date/dev/
VS Code Download: code.visualstudio.com
VS Code Playdate Template: github.com/Whitebrim/VSCode-PlaydateTemplate
Execution Policy Error Bypass: stackoverflow.com/questions/56199111/visual-studio-code-cmd-error-cannot-be-loaded-because-running-scripts-is-disabl/67420296#67420296
Playdate SDK Documentation: https://sdk.play.date/1.9.0/Inside%20Playdate.html
Example Project Source Code: github.com/SquidGodDev/PlaydateSDKExampleProject
Join my Discord (I'm very active!): discord.gg/kDM8RU4aFt
Twitter (See what I'm working on early): twitter.com/SquidGodDev
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:20 Installing the SDK
1:00 Setting up VS Code
2:04 Project Structure
2:32 Game Structure
3:27 Sprites
5:10 Background
6:38 Player Movement/Input
7:08 Timers
9:08 Coin Placement/Collisions
Music/SFX from Epidemic Sound. Get a month free with my link! share.epidemicsound.com/njknzw
#Playdate #PlaydateSDK #PlaydateConsole
OUTDATED VIDEO - There is an updated video with a newer setup with steps for Mac and Linux as well, along with a step by step guide to make your first game. The new version is here: youtu.be/UZ04rk3lLqU
Learn how to setup the Playdate SDK for Windows and put together a simple game. I go over how to install the SDK, setting up VS Code to allow for code auto-completion and building from the editor, file and game structure, as well as making a simple game about picking up coins.
Check out my book "The Beginner's Guide to Lua for Game Development" to learn how to program in Lua!
squidgod.itch.io/lua-for-game-development
UPDATE: The setup in this video is slightly outdated as the template was changed Here's an updated video with the updated template: youtube.com/watch?v=ZPcfC98JogQ
Update to the old setup: No need to run VSCode as admin! New workaround: Open PowerShell and change execution policy to RemoteSigned, so you can run closeSim.ps1 without admin rights. Do this by entering Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser into PowerShell and enter Y. Also, Panic will be adding debug support for the Windows Simulator (as they've already done for Mac), and the creator of the template (Whitebrim) will be adding a feature to build project from side debug menu button when it's available.
Playdate SDK Download: https://play.date/dev/
VS Code Download: code.visualstudio.com
VS Code Playdate Template: github.com/Whitebrim/VSCode-PlaydateTemplate
Execution Policy Error Bypass: stackoverflow.com/questions/56199111/visual-studio-code-cmd-error-cannot-be-loaded-because-running-scripts-is-disabl/67420296#67420296
Playdate SDK Documentation: https://sdk.play.date/1.9.0/Inside%20Playdate.html
Example Project Source Code: github.com/SquidGodDev/PlaydateSDKExampleProject
Join my Discord (I'm very active!): discord.gg/kDM8RU4aFt
Twitter (See what I'm working on early): twitter.com/SquidGodDev
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:20 Installing the SDK
1:00 Setting up VS Code
2:04 Project Structure
2:32 Game Structure
3:27 Sprites
5:10 Background
6:38 Player Movement/Input
7:08 Timers
9:08 Coin Placement/Collisions
Music/SFX from Epidemic Sound. Get a month free with my link! share.epidemicsound.com/njknzw
#Playdate #PlaydateSDK #PlaydateConsole
